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Latin America is notorious for some of the worst prisons in the world, and large levels of HIV/AIDS cases have resulted from drug use and sexual relationships inside these institutions. This article notes the poor quality healthcare available in prison, and the issue of HIV/AIDS elevated by prison inmate interaction (drug use, sex) and poor healthcare.

This site addresses how drug and alcohol abuse in Latin America is widespread among the urban poor, and how the two contribute to daily violence. In poor neighborhoods in the Colombian cities of Medellín and Bogotá, approximately half of the population uses drugs--mainly marijuana, followed by cocaine and amphetamines. It is believed that heavy drinking in Guatemala is associated with Mayans, indigenous people trapped in poverty by discrimination and armed conflict.

This article discusses the dramatic change that has taken place in Latin America regarding the conversion from Catholicism to Evangelical Christianity. There has been a great rise of Pentecostal Christianity in Guatemala and Brazil, but Venezuela is quick to catch up. Some people believe that Evangelical Christianity is going to save Venezuela from the economic dismay the country is in, as well as the high crime rates. People believe that Evangelical Christianity brings people in touch with their natural emotions "through Jesus" and therefore enables people to help others in need, especially the poor. Some also believe that the rise is Pentecostal Christians is due to their new leftist president, Chavez.

This article talks about the religious changes in Latin America and especially the situation in Venezuela. With the rise of the evangelical Christian population, the article examines the affect that the political influence and in particular Hugo Chavez has had on this religious shift. As well, the article talks about the main demographic behind the religion and who choses to believe and why.

Here it is argued that evangelical Christianity is the "religion of the poor". Saying this, it explains why many people join the relgion: as a way to overcome hardships in life. This religion brings not only spiritual but also social renewal. We also are now aware that the majority of people converting are coming from the Catholic church.

Illegal immigration into the United States from Mexico has increasing become a topic for debate. The Mexican government seeks Illegal-Alien Amnesty; however, the United States, under the Bush Administration, believed in building a 'guestworker' program, which in theory would address the educational deficits amongst the incoming immigrant workers. Immigrant workers who enter the United States are coming from areas of poverty which lack adequate educational facilities and due to the lack of financial prosperity young adults are frequently withdrawing from school to try and turn a profit for the family. The cheap labor that comes into the United States comes at a high cost to the natives as it increases the poor population and the amount of people relying on welfare programs. Analysis of the statistics show that the amount of households headed by immigrants make up the majority of the poor population on welfare and without health care insurance; therefore, the United States is seeking to establish policies that address both issues in the welfare system as well as the policies regarding hiring unskilled immigrant workers.

This is a movie that documents the life of two friends growing up poor in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. The themes presented in this film are common throughout Latin America.

This is a movie that documents the life of two friends growing up poor in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. The themes presented in this film are common throughout Latin America.

This article is from 2008, one year after Mexico City legalized abortions. It talks about the continuing difficulties for poor women to receive safe abortions, even though they had been legalized. Women complained about long lines at understaffed public clinics, hostile treatment from hospital workers who opposed abortion, and unfair bureaucratic hurdles which made it difficult or impossible for them to get the procedure done. At the time this article was written, the abortion law was being challenged in the Supreme Court by the conservative government.

A radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and justice. Due to religious influences and beliefs, women do not have the rights to their bodies by law, so they seek alternative methods to have abortions, with a large number resulting in death. Similar to our discussion of sexual education in schools, the 'reality' does not match up with what is taught in schools (especially Catholic ones). Instead of being proactive and preventative, abstinence is taught. iolence against women is coming to the forefront as a major concern in Latin America. Termed "femicide," violence against women by men because they are women is a poor result of the hierarchy of the cultural society in Latin America. Machismo and masculinity influence men to feel that they must act this way from a young way in order to exert their power and strength, but it is unacceptable. This article also discusses women's movements and their fight for equal rights as well as rights to maternity leave and other aspects that women who work must take into account.

In this article from The New York Times in January 1993, the rise of AIDS in women in Latin America is discussed. Similarly to in Gutmann's findings, the fidelity of husbands is questioned as the reason for the rise in women's infections. With men having sexual affairs, they are contributing to the rise of AIDS in females.

This article discusses the battle between the catholic church and Venezuela's socialist president, Chavez. The catholic church is being criticized as being "Chavistas" because their new mission is a "preference for the poor". Some members of the church are willing to accept that they are following some of Chavez' principals, yet others want to make a clear distinction. The article explores these identity conflicts.

In Venezuela's capital, Caracas, there has been a dramatic increase in violent crime over the past decade. There have been examples of crimes on the street where a teenager was shot dead in his wheelchair and men being hung to death by the attackers for his motorbike. Many people of Caracas have resorted to self defense classes due to the poor security and increasing crime rate in the city. These forms of self defense range from Indian wrestling, kick-boxing, karate, and martial arts. Although the rate of self defense is increasing, there doesn't seem to be any noticeable improvement in the security as of now.

This is an article about how religious leaders in Venezuela criticize a recently (2008) formed church that openly backs President Hugo Chavez's socialist politics. The church was set up by a group of Anglicans and Catholics to help out the poor, but the ruling body of Catholic Church claims its aim is to divide the church.

Guatemala is experiencing a drastic inflation in necessary survival items such as food, housing, and clothing. This inflation concerns the entire country, especially the poor and children under five. In May of 2008, The Regional Ministerial Conference met "Towards the Eradication of Child Undernutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean" in Chile. The meeting hoped to find methods of preventing and eradicating child undernutrition in the region, especially under the inflated circumstances. Thousands of Guatemalan families are food insecure, and therefore many suffer from malnutrition. This article discusses the meeting last May; their goals, initiatives, and decisions.

This news report gives a description of street children in Colombia. This is of importance because it serves an indication of the dire conditions poor people endure. The report details haunting numbers and images that make street children seem all the more helpless.

This article sheds some light on the current kidnapping epidemic in Venezuela. Regardless of class, race, gender, etc., people are being kidnapped and held for ransom. Despite the government's attempt to freeze such kidnappings, the violence continues.

This article dicusses the murder of Rodrigo Rosenberg, a famous lawyer in Guatemala in May 2009. A few days before he was shot, Mr. Rosenberg made in a video in which he predicted his death and blamed President Álvaro Colom. Rosenberg also blamed the President for the death of his wife, the president's secretary, and other bankers and businessmen. The article goes into a description of the crime and poverty that have hit Guatemala since the civil war.

Although this article does not directly discuss the civil war that Guatemala has experienced and has yet to fully recover from, here you can see some the direct results of the civil war. What occurred in Guatemala definitely prepared it for the condition that it is in now. Not only is the country facing political issues, dealing with issues regarding the past civil war, the land which was once inhabited by indigenous peoples has not turned into a complete battlefield, even after the war.

In this New York Times article, dated May 22, 2009, the conspiracy surrounding the death of Rodrigo Rosenberg, a prominent lawyer in Guatemala, was discussed. Even though there was a peace accord signed in 1996 to end the civil war, violence and corruption still exists in the society. In a video shot days before Rosenberg's death, he not only predicted that he would be next to be killed, but also pointed out the president and his wife, who is also his secretary, as the main figures involved in this corruption. Rosenberg said that the scandal involved the Rural Development Bank and had already resulted in the death of one of his clients and his client's daughter. The president and his wife have publicly stated they had nothing to do with the murders, but Rosenberg predicting his death is a chilling aspect to the accusations.

This article tells of the extreme poverty in Guatemala and speaks particularly on what is being done for people in this area. Guatemala has the highest rate of child malnutrition in Latin American and the fourth in the world. This is because the food that the people eat, such as tortillas and beans, are lacking in protein. The people are too poor to buy beef, eggs, or chicken, which could prevent the malnutrition.

This article discusses the notion of poverty and violence within the Guatemalan society. Currently, there are at least 900,000 residents, all above the age of 60 who are living on the dirty, impoverished streets of Guatemalan cities. Although the government has proposed solutions to the overwhelming amount of poverty and economic turmoil, there has been little progress in recent years.

This site reports a recent study of the living standards for Guatemalans. In the past few years, the rates of poverty, crime, and malnutrition have skyrocketed alarmingly. The hardest hit are the elderly and the children. In order to combat this, Guatemala is instituting benefit programs to give welfare to the elderly.